Strange #147
Strange #147 represents a characteristic installment of Éditions Lug's long-running mission to bring Marvel Comics to French readers, packaging four translated stories under one cover in a format that introduced an entire generation of French fans to characters who would not reach wide French-language availability any other way. The issue sits squarely in the early-1980s apex of the Strange run — the period when the magazine, launched in January 1970 after Lug's earlier Marvel digests Fantask and Marvel were shut down by French censors, had matured into a polished four-feature anthology. Its bundling of Iron Man, Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Rom in a single monthly digest reflects how Strange shaped the superhero reading habits of French-speaking audiences for over two decades.
"La chute !" delivers a gripping blend of small-town mystery and sci-fi action in Strange #147, a 1982 French edition with a 6,50 FRF cover price. Written by Bill Mantlo and illustrated with dynamic precision by Sal Buscema—both inks and colors by Buscema—this issue follows reporter Mack Killburn as he investigates rumors of Rom in the quiet town of Clairton, only to find the locals dismiss the giant robot as a prank. When a pair of kids awaken a deadly Watchwraith in a mine shaft, Rom must defend the town in a high-stakes battle that leaves Mack questioning the truth—and the townspeople unexpectedly standing by the alien warrior. The cover, by Jean Frisano, captures the moment of tension with striking clarity.
In "Le Garde-Spectre !", reporter Mack Killburn arrives in Clairton chasing a story about the legendary robot Rom—only to find the townspeople laughing it off as a prank. But when two kids accidentally awaken a dormant Watchwraith deep in a mine shaft, Rom must fight the creature through the heart of town, forcing the skeptical locals to confront the truth.
In the shadow of a Wraith plague spreading through human hosts, Rom and Starshine confront the grim truth about Terminator: his human form fell to the same disease that now threatens Earth, leaving him with no body to return to once his mission ends.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
Éditions Lug was founded in Lyon in 1950 by Marcel Navarro and Auguste Vistel — the company name deriving from Lugdunum, the Gallo-Roman name for Lyon. After Claude Vistel returned from New York in 1968 and persuaded Navarro to license Marvel material, two early digest attempts (Fantask and Wampus) were cancelled within six issues each under pressure from French censorship authorities. Strange launched in January 1970 as the surviving vehicle for those Marvel translations and quickly proved durable, remaining in print for over 25 years. By the early 1980s — described by historians of the company as arguably Lug's best years — Strange had settled into a reliable four-story format, translating recent Marvel issues typically one to two years behind their US cover dates. The magazine also operated under ongoing editorial pressure to tone down violence: sound-effect lettering was sometimes removed, bladed weapons erased, and occasionally entire panels cut to satisfy the French commission on youth publications.
Trivia · 7 facts
- Published March 1982 by Éditions Lug, Lyon, France; 88 pages, full color, French language.
- Contains four translated Marvel stories: Iron Man (23 pages, titled 'La Chute!'), L'Araignée/Spider-Man (17 pages, titled 'Flashback!'), Daredevil (8 pages, titled 'Trahison!'), and Rom (22 pages, titled 'Le Garde Spectre!').
- The Iron Man story reprints Iron Man (1968 series) #144 ('Sunfall!'), written by David Michelinie with pencils by John Romita Jr. and inks by Bob Layton.
- Credited writers across the issue include Bill Mantlo, David Michelinie, and Roger McKenzie; credited artists include Sal Buscema, Joe Brozowski, and John Romita Jr., with inks by Mike Esposito.
- Strange #147 is part of the continuous kiosk run of Strange (vol. 1), which ran from January 1970 through late 1988 as a monthly anthology, making it one of the primary conduits for Marvel content in France throughout that era.
- The magazine routinely subjected reprinted art to editorial censorship — removing sound effects, erasing weapons, and occasionally cutting panels — to comply with French regulations on publications for young readers, meaning content in this issue may differ in minor ways from its US source material.
- Éditions Lug was sold to the Scandinavian Semic Group in 1989, ending the Lug era; Strange continued under Semic branding until Marvel's French licence lapsed in 1996.
Cast · 40 characters
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Reprints
↩ Reprints The Amazing Spider-Man #181 (1978), Daredevil #153 (1978), Iron Man #144 (1981), Rom #16 (1981), Strange Spécial Origines #145 (1982), Une Aventure de l'Araignée #14 (1982), Spécial Strange #27 (1982)
Reprinted in Spidey #26 (1982), Titans #38 (1982)
Key issues in Strange
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